Hot Topics:

Their View: Let doctors and churches solve problem

By Walter Rubel

Posted:
02/02/2013 06:20:26 PM MST

On the day that President Barack Obama unveiled his package of proposed gun safety measures, U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce issued the following statement:

"I am, and always have been, a strong supporter of Second Amendment rights. More gun restrictions may allow Washington to congratulate itself, but will never change the sickness and depravity that drive someone to murder indiscriminately. Instead, let's look to our communities, our churches, our doctors, and our families: the institutions that do have the power to solve the problem."

OK. Lets start with doctors.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has submitted a position paper stating, "the absence of guns from children's homes and communities is the most reliable and effective measure to prevent firearm-related injuries to them."

The Journal of the American Medical Association published an opinion piece after the Newtown shooting calling gun violence a public health threat, and recommending strategies similar to those used to curb smoking or reduce fatal car crashes.

"A coordinated, multidimensional public health strategy informed by other public health successes will reduce the risk of future tragedies like the Newtown shooting and the broader scourge of gun violence," it said.

In an effort to stiffle that approach, Florida passed a law in 2011, since overturned by the courts, making it illegal for doctors to even ask if their patients keep a gun in the home. Clearly, the good folks at the NRA don't want doctors playing any kind of authoritative role in the gun debate.

Advertisement

How about churches?

In 2000, Catholic bishops submitted a report titled, "Responsibility, Rehabilitation and Restoration: A Catholic Perspective on Crime and Criminal Justice."

It states, "As bishops, we support measures that control the sale and use of firearms and make them safer — especially efforts that prevent their unsupervised use by children or anyone other than the owner — and we reiterate our call for sensible regulation of handguns."

The governing board of the National Council of Churches adopted a policy in 2010 on the "grievous problem of gun violence in the United States."

It states, "Responsible gun ownership can be consistent with our constitutional rights; however, it must be stressed that there are relatively few shootings by average citizens defending themselves. Rather, most fatal and non-fatal shootings result from abuse or misuse of guns."

That leaves our families and our communities. My family supports reasonable, common-sense gun safety measures such as those outlined by the president.

I won't presume to speak for my community.

At first, I was surprised Pearce didn't offer a more full-throated denunciation of any new proposal as a government gun grab. Then I remembered the strategy of House Republicans, as clearly spelled out by Speaker John Boehner. They will let the Senate go first, with hopes that things bog down on that side of Congress and the House will get a free pass on the issue.

Pearce was just keeping his powder dry ... or at least trying to.

But it's just too tempting. And so, in a press release last week demanding the resignation of Attorney General Eric Holder for the umpteenth time, Pearce thundered, "It is unacceptable that this administration presses for gun control and background checks for law-abiding citizens, while refusing to address the gun crimes of its own attorney general."

I wrote what was probably a whiney column a few weeks back predicting that nothing would change after Sandy Hook. Now, I'm starting to think I was wrong. It does seem as if at least minor reform will be accomplished — improved background checks or restrictions on high-capacity magazines.

It will happen despite the best efforts of our representative to thwart it.

Walter Rubel is managing editor of the Sun-News. He can be reached at wrubel@lcsun-news.com or follow @WalterRubel on Twitter.